The highly anticipated dark fantasy from lauded The Orphanage director J.A. Bayona, A Monster Calls is a children’s tale of the old-school variety: brooding and beautiful, with adult themes of jealousy, anger, selfishness, and death. Adapted from the hugely popular novel of the same name, Bayona’s interpretation of Patrick Ness’s story employs dimly-lit visual conventions to represent the overwhelming loss felt by our young protagonist, the grieving Conor. The boy seeks companionship and solace via the titular monster, an enormous, ragged tree beast, voiced by Liam Neeson, who is at turns terrifying and tender as he offers a chance for catharsis. Guillermo del Toro protégée Bayona goes suitably dark and deep, creating a fractured, haunting, but painfully lovely world, allowing our young hero, caught between dream and reality, to find his own way back to the light.

Dir. J.A. Bayona, 2016, DCP, 108 min.

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